Habits of Document Analysis

At The DBQ Project, we talk a lot about the habits of document analysis, but what does that look like? How do you get started?

For years how I taught was how I like to learn. As a learner more than anything, I crave novelty. I enjoy lessons that are fresh, crisp and different. I find routine BORING. As a teacher, I would go out of my way to present a map in a different way with the intent to engage my students. What took me probably way too long to figure out, was that reason why some my students weren’t getting it was because of how I was teaching. For every student in my early years who craved routine, I am sorry.

I started to think about what I wanted as teacher. More than anything when I gave my students work, I wanted them to be capable of beginning work, regardless of their lexile level. That got me thinking about order of operations in math. Thankfully by the time they came to me, my students had mastered this concept. How did they get there? It simple, some saint in elementary drilled order of operations until it became a habit. So, I had an idea. Could there be an order of operations for document analysis that a routine averse teacher could embrace?

I am going to introduce my routine today, Document Analysis Steps and show you Steps 1-3 that corresponds with Prepping the Document.

I am going to introduce my routine today, Document Analysis Steps and show you Steps 1-3 that corresponds with Prepping the Document.

· Drawing a box around everything you see, forces students to frame not just the image, but also the title, source, notes and captions. It focuses their attention on what information they are responsible to investigate.

· Writing the DBQ question on the box serves as a reminder that the only reason we are looking at this document is to find information to help answer the question, Early Jamestown: Why Did So Many Colonists Die?

· Marking the document letter, source, note and captions with arrows draws attention to important information that students often overlook.

You would be hard pressed to find a teacher more routine averse than me. I am telling you, when I reluctantly started incorporating habits it was almost like magic. Students who were hesitant to get started on everything, all of sudden began work without prodding. I first introduced the Document Analysis Steps outside a DBQ. It quickly became how we marked up all types of informational texts. What I most want you to understand is that my routines don’t have to be your routines. Think about who you teach, try a few things out and you will come to an order of operations for document analysis that makes sense to you. This isn’t about teaching a DBQ, it’s about helping your students make meaning from whatever texts they encounter.

Amie Polcaro

The DBQ Project